"The new highway alignment [in 1937, Interstate 84, Tanner Creek to Cascade Locks] was a water-level route with broad, sweeping curves. It was extended eastward and westward in the 1950s as a new water-level route. It was upgraded in the 1960s to a four-lane highway (Interstate 84). The new roadway cut long arcs through the Columbia River Highway alignment from Cascade Locks to the Hood River (east of the city of Hood River). It left many discontinuous, but very visible and accessible highway traces, including the portion form Tanner Creek to Cascade Locks."
[National Historic Landmark Nomination Form, 1996]

"In Cascade Locks, the original route of the highway is on Wa-Na-Pa Street and Forest Lane Road. The old highway in Cascade Locks is now the Cascade Locks Highway."
[National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, 1983]

"A wide pavement section along Wa-Na-Pa Street includes sidewalks, curbs, parking, bike lanes and two lanes of traffic. Relatively new commerical buildings line the area along with several vacant lots."
[HCRH Master Plan, 2005]

"Forest Lane has changed recently to have two characters, a more urban western section, with curbs and sidewalks on the south and a rural residential eastern section with gravel shoulders. Also included are a grass airport and some forested parcels. An industrial area borders the highway near the freeway."
[HCRH Master Plan, 2005]

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The town of Cascade Locks, as seen from the Bridge of the Gods, Oregon.
View from moving car heading north across Bridge of the Gods.
Image taken May 11, 2012.

In 1878 construction of the 8-foot-deep Cascade Locks Navigation Canal began. It was completed on November 5, 1896, providing a way around the infamous Cascade Rapids, a section of the Columbia which had restricted navigation up the Columbia since the time of Lewis and Clark.
Forty-two years later, early in 1938, the canal was submerged under the rising waters of the Bonneville Reservoir, behind the Bonneville Dam. Today the Locks are located within "Marine Park" and can be reached from Wa-Pa-Na Street.
In 1974 the Cascade Locks Marine Park (and the Locks) were added to the National Register of Historic Places.

"The Columbia Gorge District Ranger Station, initially called the Herman Creek Ranger Station, was used as a Forest Service administration site much earlier than the CCC period. Additions and improvements were made by the CCC to the Summit Meadows CCC Camp in the 1930's. After these improvements, the ranger station's name was changed.

In 1935, plans were made to add a warehouse, a gas and oil house, and a barn. The barn was to have been located in an orchard beyond the ranger station. Because of the site's proximity to the highway and railroad, problems occurred. In October 1935, F.W. Cleator, a recreation site examiner for Mount Hood National Forest, suggested that the entire ranger station be moved, because of loud noise, lack of light, and unsuitable access. Because funds were not available to purchase land for a new site, the ranger station was not moved, and the new warehouse and gas house were built at the existing site.

The only remaining CCC-built structures at the Columbia Gorge Ranger Station are the warehouse and gas house. A residence building constructed in the 1920's also remains. The site is now used as a work center by the ranger district. ... An impressive rock wall was constructed along one edge of the site."

Otis and others, 1986, "The Forest Service and The Civilian Conservation Corps: 1933-42, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, FS-395, August 1986, Chapter 14, Mount Hood National Forest.

"The reinforced concrete slab structure is 50 feet in length and consists of three slab spans -- two 15-foot spans and a 20-foot span. ... The bridge is on a county road."
[National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, 1983]

"Shellrock Mountain is one of the landmark features of the HCRH. Its bare slopes are covered in a deep, unstable talus formed from dioritic and basaltic rock. ... The instability and danger of rock fall made the site a challenging one for road building. ... The 4,000 feet of the HCRH that skirted Shellrock Mountain were notable for the dramatic talus slopes above, the impressive rock retaining walls and rubble masonry parapet guard wall along this stretch, and the proximity of the road to the Columbia River. This section of the HCRH was replaced by the water-level highway. Only fragments of the retaining walls and the original roadbed remain."
[Historic Columbia River Highway Cultural Landscape Inventory Report, 2010]

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Penny Postcard: Shellrock Mountain, Oregon, and the Columbia River Highway, ca.1937.
Penny Postcard, Postmarked 1937, "At the foot of Shell Rock Mountain, Columbia River Highway, Oregon.". Dog Mountain, Washington, is in the background. Published by The Oregon News, Portland, Oregon. Card is postmarked August 1937. Card #54. In the private collection of Lyn Topinka.

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Remnant of the old Wagon Road on Shellrock Mountain, Oregon.
View from Wind Mountain, Washington, looking south towards Oregon, with the Columbia River and Interstate 84 in the foreground.
Image taken May 10, 2006.

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Path (behind barrier) of the Historic Columbia River Highway at Shellrock Mountain, Oregon.
View seen from heading east on Interstate 84. Rain drops on window.
Image taken June 12, 2012.

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Interstate 84 at Shellrock Mountain.
Barrier on right keeps Shellrock Mountain rock off of Interstate 84.
Image taken September 29, 2006.

"The Pacific Express train carrying 148
passengers and crew rolled out of The Dalles
heading west on schedule to arrive in
Portland later that day, December 18, 1884.
Along the way a blizzard trapped the train
between two avalanches with 25 foot high
snow drifts. A relief party finally reached them
on Christmas Day by foot. Among those
helping the hungry passengers was "one hog
who had the misfortune of being in Hood
River at the time." A week later the train was
able to retreat to The Dalles. It finally
reached Portland three weeks late on January
7, 1885."
[Oregon State Archives website, March 2004]

(HMP 57) ... Bronze plaque commemorating the beginning of the Columbia River Highway:

This plaque was once located at Shellrock Mountain.

Construction of the
COLUMBIA RIVER HIGHWAY
Begun Here In 1912
Funds Were Contributed By
SIMON BENSON
Labor Was Performed By Honor Men
Detailed By
GOVERNOR OSWALD WEST

Bronze Plaque for the beginning of the Historic Columbia River Highway.
Once located at Shellrock Mountain, the plaque today is located at the Starvation Creek Rest Area, Oregon.
Image taken September 29, 2006.

Starvation Creek to Viento Creek, HCRH State Trail ...

The Starvation Creek to Viento Creek segment of the Historic Columbia River Highway State Trail is one mile long and connects Starvation Creek State Park with Viento State Park.

HCRH State Trail, Viento State Park to Starvation Creek State Park, Oregon.
Image taken February 8, 2016.

Original Mile Post Marker 58 ...

Mile Post Marker 58, an original Columbia River Highway milepost, can be reached via the Historic Columbia River Highway State Trail.

HMP 58 ... Original Mile Post Marker 58:

"The mile post marker is the only remaining marker on the Columbia River Highway within the historic district. Originally, these markers were placed at one-mile intervals along the entire highway. The marker is of reinforced concrete and triangular in shape. The numbers "58" are recessed into the concrete, are vertically placed, and appear on two sides of the triangular post."
[National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, 1983]

Milepost Marker 58, located along the Historic Columbia River Highway State Trail heading west from Viento, Oregon.
Image taken February 24, 2016.

Viento ...

Viento State Park lies on the Oregon side of the Columbia River at River Mile (RM) 161, one mile upstream of Starvation Creek State Park and two miles downstream of Mitchell Point. Viento State Park was named from the first two letters of the names of three railroad men, Villard, Endicott, and Tolman. It is just co-incident that the name "Viento" is Spanish for "windy", which fits this area as it is one of the windiest spots in the Gorge.

"Viento State Park is located on both sides of Interstate Highway 80N [today's Interstate 84] ... approximately eight miles west of Hood River in Hood River County.
The first land in this park was a 3.6-acre tract, purchased on May 13, 1925, from J. O. and Theresa D. Jones at a cost of $3,000. This sum was paid by the Pacific Telephone and Telegraph Company to make amends for damages by the company's clearing crews cutting trees in park areas. The next addition to the park was 25 years later when seven tracts, aggregating 240.23 acres, were purchased. The park contained a total of 243.83 acres at the close of 1963.
Acquisition of the area was to provide a resting place and picnic facilities for the motoring public in the cool, shady grove of young fir and maple trees growing along the banks of Viento Creek, a small, rippling, mountain stream flowing through the area."
[Chester H. Armstrong (compiler), 1965, "History of the Oregon State Parks: 1917-1963, published by Oregon State Parks]

(HMP 58.8) ... Viento:

"This section consists of four short fragments of HCRH, which begin just east of Viento State Park. In this area the old wagon road would around a series of very steep rocky points jutting out into the Columbia River. The historic highway stayed close to the railroad and water level, using the course of the old wagon road around these points. As a result, most of the roadway was lost to the water-level highway, leaving only a few short "ox-bows" where the old road curved into the draws. These fragments in general have considerable damage due to the construction of the new freeway, with piles of debris, earth and old pavement common. They are badly deterioreated, overgrown with vegetation, and washed out by flooding."
[Historic Columbia River Highway Cultural Landscape Inventory Report, 2010]

"This section contains three fragments of the historic highway between Perham Creek, on the west end, and Mitchell Point to the east. The short segment at Perham Creek is a remnant left where the historic highway curved south around a rocky point, away from the water line into the mouth of the Perham Creek draw. Historically, the highway then rose along the basalt rock shelf above the railroad, following the course of the old wagon road to Mitchell Point. At Mitchell Point the highway diverged from the wagon road over the point, going through Mitchell Point tunnel instead."
[Historic Columbia River Highway Cultural Landscape Inventory Report, 2010]

"Interpretive information at Mitchell Point tells visitors about the destroyed "Tunnel of Many Vistas." The original tunnel location is a ledge, being used as a rockfall catch area."
[HRCH Master Plan, 2005]

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Mitchell Spur and Mitchell Point, Oregon, as seen from Interstate 84.
View from moving car, heading east on Interstate 84, looking at the western side of Mitchell Point.
Image taken November 10, 2014.

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Historical Columbia River Highway path (fence) at Mitchell Point, Oregon, as seen from Interstate 84.
View from moving car, heading east on Interstate 84, looking up at Mitchell Point.
Image taken April 18, 2010.

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New overlook (opened in November 2012) at Mitchell Point, Oregon.
Image taken November 10, 2014.

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Stonework wall at overlook at Mitchell Point, Oregon.
Image taken November 10, 2014.

"The tunnel was 390 feet long, with a vertical roadway clearance of 19 feet. The wall on the river side (north side) had a minimum thickness of 6 feet. Five windows were cut in the side of the tunnel wall to afford light and ventilation. The arched windows were 20 feet by 30 feet. The tunnel had a 208-foot reinforced concrete approach viaduct. ...
The tunnel was one of the marvels of engineering on the highway and was patterned after the famous Axenstrasse Tunnel in Switzerland, which had three windows. The tunnel was closed in the early 1950s and destroyed in the 1960s when the interstate was constructed."
[National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, 1983]

Penny Postcard: West Entrance, Mitchell Point Tunnel, ca.1921.
Penny Postcard, Postmarked 1921, "West Entrance to Mitchell's Point Tunnel, Columbia River Highway, Oregon.".
Caption on back reads: "This view gives one a very clear idea o the cost and ingenuity of the engineers who had charge of the construction.".
Published by The Oregon News Company. Card #O-46. Card is postmarked May 26, 1921. In the private collection of Lyn Topinka.

"This section is found on the east side of Mitchell Point, and includes about half a mile of Mitchell Point Drive, which follows the alignment of the HCRH and provides access to residential properties."
... The HCRH alignment has its west endpoint at the approximate site of the destroyed Mitchell Point Tunnel, and runs through a disused quarry. The 1870s military wagon road went through this quarry area as well, winding down from the saddle between Mitchell Point and little Mitchell Point to meet the HCRH once more. The HCRH again followed its course from this point toward Ruthton Hill (Elliot 1914). This quarry was expanded during the construction of the water-level highway and used subsequently, creating a large, disturbed open space. In the 1930s, this land was still primarily orchard and agricultural, surrounded by forested slopes. Some of the historic field pattern is still traceable in the present landscape, and the 1908 Locke (now Galligan) family house still fronts the road as it once did the military wagon road in the same location (Hadlow et al. 2009). I-84 now cuts the property off from the river and replaces some of the orchards."
[Historic Columbia River Highway Cultural Landscape Inventory Report, 2010]

HMP ... Mitchell Point Drive:

"A portion of the alignment of the HCRH is now Mitchell Point Drive, a short well-maintained road providing access to residential property."
[Historic Columbia River Highway Cultural Landscape Inventory Report, 2010]

HMP ... Culvert:

"A 12" culvert with concrete head and wing walls in fair condition carries a small seasonal creek under the road."
[Historic Columbia River Highway Cultural Landscape Inventory Report, 2010]

HMP ... Quarry:

"The disused rock quarry is at the west end of the segment. This is a large, disturbed open space. The alignment of the HCRH in this area is uncertain. The military wagon road once came through this area as well, and the end of it can still be found on the southwest slopes above the quarry. At the top of the quarry fragments of pavement show where the HCRH came down from Mitchell Point Tunnel."
[Historic Columbia River Highway Cultural Landscape Inventory Report, 2010]

"The Locke family settled here in the 1880s, building a house along the old military wagon road in 1908. This 1908 house still stands and is occupied by members of the original family. A barn of even earlier construction has been moved from its original location (Hadlow et al., 2009). There are several newer residences and outbuildings that also front the roadway."
[Historic Columbia River Highway Cultural Landscape Inventory Report, 2010]

HMP ... Edgar Locke:

"[In 1884] Edgar Locke moved from Bariboo, Michigan to Hood River, Oregon with his wife Nellie Bayles and his young daughter Margaret. The family purchased over 300 acres on the south shore of the Columbia River west of Hood River, at the foot of Mitchell Point. Edgar soon became known as a skilled orchardist ... The first thing that Edgar did upon arriving at the new homestead was to build a small wood frame house to shelter his family through the harsh Gorge winters to come. The original house stood until 1908, when much of the wood was disassembled and used to build the prominent house that remains today."
[Robert W. Hadlow and others, 2009, HCRH Oral History Report, SR 500-261, Oregon Department of Transportation]

HMP ... Locke/Galligan (1900):

"A very pretty home wedding was solemnized at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Edgar Locke, at noon, Wednesday, June 27, 1900, when their daughter Margaret was married to Wilbur H. Galligan, son of James B. Galligan. Rev. H. K. Benson of the United Brethren church initiated in the simple but impressive ceremony. Only the immediate relatives were present. The parlors were very tastily decorated with ferns and cut flowers. After the wedding ceremony the guests sat down to an elegant dinner. The contracting parties are well known and highly esteemed by all. The GLACIER joins their many friends in congratulations and in wishes for a most pleasant and prosperous career."
["The Hood River Glacier", June 29, 1900, courtesy Historic Oregon Newspapers, University of Oregon Libraries Archives]

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Historic 1908 Locke home as seen from Mitchell Point Drive, Historic Columbia River Highway, Oregon.
Image taken February 8, 2016.

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Historic 1908 Locke home as seen from eastbound Interstate 84.
Image taken December 6, 2017.

Ruthton Point Viaduct ...

Ruthton Point, Oregon, is a cape jutting into the Columbia River at River Mile (RM) 166, downstream from Hood River. Remnants of the early Columbia River Highway are still visible on the cliff above Ruthton Point.
According to Oregon Geographic Names (McArthur and McArthur, 2003), in 1886 Joseph W. Morton bought a farm which included the point of land jutting into the Columbia River, and named it after his daughter Ruth Morton.

"The Ruthton Point fragment begins abruptly at Interstate 84. Originally, this was a rocky point. The 1939 aerial indicates rock cuts around the point, now gone. Elliot created a viaduct to carry the Highway around this point, part of which has been restored along with the associated concrete guardrail and arched rubble masonry guard wall. An "eagles nest" built viewpoint and mile markers were added during the restoration. It is not clear if there was a built viewpoint here historically. A widening of the road visible on the 1939 aerial photograph corresponds to the reconstructed view point."
[Historic Columbia River Highway Cultural Landscape Inventory Report, 2010]

"Ruthton Point Viaduct, completed in 1918, is a 50' structure consisting of three reinforced-concrete deck girder spans (20', 20', and 10') carrying the highway near a promontory west of Hood River. It used a simple standardized concrete railing panel and cap. It was bypassed when the new water-level route for U.S. 30 was completed in the early 1950s. Since then it fell into disrepair, but in the early 1990s, as part of an Oregon Department of Transportation restoration project on the HCRH, Ruthton Point Viaduct was reconstructed to be part of a pedestrian and bicycle accessible trail along once abandoned sections of the route."
[HAER No. OR-36-C report, 1996]

HMP 62.9 ... Ruthton Point Viaduct (1990s):

"The rockwork at Ruthton Point has been restored, including the addition of an observatory and an interpretive sign."
[HCRH Master Plan, 2005]

"Ruthton Point, an intact section of the old highway offering spectacular views to the Gorge. In the early 1990s, ODOT restored the historic viaduct, walls and railings."
[HCRH Reconnection Strategy Report, Segment 11, "Oregon.gov"]

On the ridge upstream of Ruthton Point is Ruthton Park, a small park which presents good views of Ruthton Point, Washington State, and the Columbia River. The early Columbia River Highway has been buried under the cement of Ruthton Park's parking lot.

"During the site reconnaissance for this study, we discovered a short but intact section of historic pavement."
["Oregon.gov", 2009, HCRH Reconnection Strategy Report, Segment 11, Ruthton Point to Ruthton Park, Hood River]

"The Ruthton Park segment consists of less than 100 feet of pavement west of Ruthton Park, where the roadbed is replaced by the small parking lot of the park. ... This segment ends in trees and rock at just before a small seasonal drainage cuts across it, at the fenced boundary of Ruthton Park itself."
[Historic Columbia River Highway Cultural Landscape Inventory, Shellrock Mountain to Ruthton Point, 2010]

(HMP 63) ... Ruthton Park:

"The short Ruthton Park segment has a low, battered stone retaining wall along its entire length, that is now completely hidden by fern and moss. A number of medium to large, squared boulders, which show scaling or blasting marks, are placed at more or less regular intervals along its south edge. Their provenance and date are not known. The parking lot at Ruthton Park also has a few of these boulders along its south edge, along with four concrete bollards of the style used in the 1940s (Hadlow, 2009). The stone drinking fountain in Ruthton Park is of unknown date."
[Historic Columbia River Highway Cultural Landscape Inventory Report, 2010]

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Ruthton Point as seen from Ruthton Park, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken November 10, 2014.

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Ruthton Park, Hood River, Oregon.
The parking lot covers the roadbed of the old Columbia River Highway.
Image taken November 10, 2014.

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Large boulder and four concrete bollards, Ruthton Park, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken April 9, 2015.

All Lewis and Clark quotations from Gary Moulton editions of the Lewis and Clark Journals, University of Nebraska Press, all attempts have been made to type the quotations exactly as in the Moulton editions, however typing errors introduced by this web author cannot be ruled out; location interpretation from variety of sources, including this website author.